The connection between mental and physical education. Physical exercise and its effect on the mental development of children
The connection between mental and physical education
In terms of the tasks of mental education in the process of physical education, the following is provided:
Enrichment with special knowledge related to the field of physical culture and sports; systematic expansion and deepening of them, the formation on this basis of a meaningful attitude towards physical education and sports activities, promoting the formation of a scientific worldview;
Development of cognitive abilities, mental qualities, promotion of creative manifestations of the individual, including self-knowledge and self-education through the means of physical culture and sports.
The implementation of these tasks in the process of physical education is associated, first of all, with physical education, and the pedagogical basis is didactic principles, tools and methods.
Mastering them in a specific application, i.e. in unity with practical skills and abilities, constitutes the main educational line in physical education. This line should be closely connected with the education of cognitive activity and qualities of the mind, such as curiosity and inquisitiveness, dynamism, flexibility and subtlety of mental operations (thought acuity), for which there are considerable opportunities in the process of physical education.
Transferring knowledge directly within the framework of physical exercises, the teacher uses unique methods, the features of which are determined by the specifics of physical education (laconic explanation, instruction, accompanying explanations during the performance of motor tasks, prompt analysis of the results of their implementation, etc.). This gives dynamism to the cognitive activity of students.
Many defectologists pointed out the connection between physical and mental education (A.S. Samylichev 1, A.A. Dmitriev 2, N.A. Kozlenko, etc.). Thus, A.S. Samylichev conducted research to determine the relationship between the development of mental performance and physical qualities in auxiliary school students. As a result, it was found that in the vast majority of cases there is a direct dependence of the studied indicators - children with higher mental performance are characterized by better development of physical qualities, and vice versa. That is, by increasing the level of development of physical qualities in mentally retarded children in the process of physical education with the help of targeted individually dosed exercises, we will thereby indirectly influence the development of their mental abilities, which is one of the most important tasks of correctional and educational work in a auxiliary school. So, the development of mental performance and the level of physical qualities in mentally retarded children are in a certain relationship, which is proof of the existence of a connection between the physical and mental aspects of education. Physical and mental education are two complementary aspects of the educational process in schools for both normal and mentally retarded children.
Unity of labor and physical education
Labor education is, in fact, not so much a separate part of education as the main applied direction of all aspects of education. The labor orientation of the physical education system in our country is clearly expressed in its goals, objectives, and fundamental principles. The role of physical education in labor education and the main lines of their relationship are characterized by the following provisions:
1. Physical education has general preparatory and directly applied significance for work activity. The importance of physical education for work is determined, first of all, by the objective unity of the body’s functions. No matter how different the individual types of useful labor or productive activity may be, from the physiological side these are, in any case, functions of the human body, and each such function, whatever the content, is essentially a waste of the human brain, muscles, sense organs and etc. Physical education, providing an increase in the functional capabilities of the body, thereby creates the most important prerequisites for high performance for all types of work that require similar functional capabilities.
This is the basis, in particular, for the effect of professionally applied physical training. If physical education develops motor skills and abilities that are directly applicable in the chosen work activity, then it is, in this case, essentially one of the forms of practical labor education.
At the same time, physical education has a broader significance for work activity. By comprehensively developing physical abilities and creating a rich supply of various motor skills and abilities, it guarantees general physical fitness as a prerequisite for high productivity in any type of work.
2. The path to physical perfection is a path of many years of hard work to transform oneself, one’s “nature”; it goes through overcoming increasing loads, often very heavy ones, requiring maximum self-mobilization. In such voluntary everyday work, an attitude towards work in general is developed, especially when the physical is inextricably linked with the moral and other types of education. Then it is one of the main factors in instilling diligence, forming the habit of working with full dedication and developing creative abilities.
3. In the physical education movement of our country, a large place is given to the voluntary and free participation of physical education groups in social work and socially useful matters related to specific labor operations.
4.Labor education in the process of physical exercise is also facilitated by the systematic fulfillment of practical duties for self-service and group maintenance (preparing and cleaning training areas, equipment, caring for sports equipment, equipment, etc.).
It is important that the system for performing such duties is connected with satisfying not only personal needs, but also the needs of the team. Thanks to this, those involved not only learn the basic techniques of everyday work, but at the same time become accustomed to responsibility, conscious discipline, organization, coordination of actions in a joint work, and also acquire the ability to lead and obey, enjoying a well-established, albeit everyday, but necessary and useful work for the team.
So, we see that physical and labor education are inextricably linked. The connection between physical and labor education of mentally retarded children was pointed out by such defectologists as D.I. Azbukin (1943) 1, A.N. Graborov (1961), G.M. Dulnev and others.
Physical education plays an important role in preparing auxiliary school students for work. Physical education promotes comprehensive physical development and health promotion, corrects deficiencies in mental and physical development, develops correct skills in vital movements and expands motor capabilities by correcting motor skills, and develops readiness to master new skills.
Graduates of the VIII type school must find a job after graduation. The problem of social and labor adaptation of type VIII school graduates is currently one of the most important special problems in defectology. How successfully a mentally retarded schoolchild masters a working profession depends on his further social position and, consequently, successful adaptation to independent life. In this regard, significant attention is paid to the physical education of schoolchildren, which makes it possible to identify and develop the interests and inclinations of students, their potential capabilities.
So, from all of the above we can conclude that moral, aesthetic, mental, labor and physical education are interconnected, complementary aspects of the educational process in a auxiliary school.
During the first three years of his life, a child manages to go a long way in his development, and at the end of the third year he is ready to rise to a new stage of childhood development.
The most important developmental achievement of a 4-year-old child is that the child’s actions become purposeful. While engaging in various activities - playing, drawing, constructing, as well as in everyday behavior, children begin to act in accordance with the set goal, although due to instability of attention they may forget about it, because they are distracted, leaving one thing for another. But with gradual mastery of the technique of action, the child becomes bolder and more independent; This is facilitated by daily practice. At four years old, a child can already do a lot on his own, without expecting or requiring help from adults (for example, he sees that water has been spilled on the table, he takes a rag and wipes it himself).
The general picture of the physical development of a four-year-old child can be depicted as follows: compared to the first three years of life, the growth rate slows down, the baby does not gain height and weight so quickly. Over the course of a year, body weight increases by 1.5-2 kg, height by 5-7 cm; at four years old, the child’s body weight is about 16.5 kg, height is about 102 cm.
It is from this age that a noticeable accumulation of muscle strength begins, endurance increases, and mobility increases. It is important to pay attention to the fact that the skeletal system still retains its cartilaginous structure in some places (hands, shin bones, some parts of the spine). This demonstrates how important it is to constantly monitor the correct position of the child’s body during sleep, etc.
The baby’s nervous system is also the most vulnerable and requires careful treatment from adults.
At the age of four, significant changes occur in the nature and content of the child’s activities, in the development of individual mental processes, and in relationships with people.
Creative games become of great importance in the development of a child when the child takes on a certain role and subordinates his behavior to it. These games show the child’s interest in the adult world, which is a model of behavior for him. Children's joint games begin to prevail over individual and side-by-side games, but there is not yet sufficient consistency between the participants, and the duration of the game is short. Games at this age retain the same plot for a long time. It changes easily and quickly. As soon as a child sees one of his peers playing with some kind of toy or remembers the last time, for example, they decorated a Christmas tree or were engaged in “loading firewood” on a car, or some other event, after the started game stops , then the child quickly forgets what he recently played. The game moves spasmodically, one plot quickly gives way to another. The surrounding life is reproduced in children's games very closely and inseparably. (For example, when depicting an airplane, a child sits on blocks, holds a cube made of building material in his hands and “buzzes.” Here both the image of the airplane and the image of the pilot, his actions and the sound of the engine merged (it is still not clear what the child was showing in your game?).
This unity of images in the game is very characteristic of children. We also find it in other types of child activity, for example, when reproducing complex plots in a drawing or telling something.
In the games of children, the instability of their attention and increased emotional excitability are clearly manifested. The ability to exert volition is still very poorly developed in a four-year-old preschooler. But when playing a pilot or a policeman, a doctor or a salesman, the child is forced to limit and restrain himself to the role that the game requires and this is how he exercises his willpower. The listed features indicate the peculiar psyche of the child. Knowledge of these features tells both the teacher and parents what to do, how to manage children's games in order to provide the best conditions for the development of young children. A child often does not yet know how to play, he is not born with this ability, so an adult needs to teach him this activity. The role of the teacher and parents here should be more active (they need to stimulate, suggest the theme of the game, organize the child’s activity and include it in a common game with one of the children, etc.).
In visual activities and design, children move on to thoughtful depictions of objects, although the means of realizing the plan are still imperfect. In drawing, a child’s capabilities begin to be determined by graphic images, ideas about how the depicted object should look on paper.
Gradually, the number of graphic images grows, and the range of objects depicted by the child expands accordingly. In the process of playing, drawing or constructing, a child becomes familiar with the properties of objects, his perception, thinking, imagination, etc. develop.
The relationship between physical education and mental education is manifested directly and indirectly.
The direct connection lies in the direct impact of physical education on the level of development of mental abilities of students due to the emergence during classes of cognitive situations related to the study and improvement of movement techniques, increasing their economization and accuracy, as well as problem situations of varying complexity that require making independent decisions, active actions and a creative approach to solving assigned problems.
The indirect connection is that improving health and increasing the overall vital activity of the body leads to greater productivity in mental activity.
The relationship between physical development and mental performance of children has been the subject of many experimental studies conducted both in our country and abroad.
In studies conducted over three years in Varna (Bulgaria), the effect of swimming on health, the level of development of motor skills and changes in the attention of children as an indicator of their mental performance was studied. The general mental performance of schoolchildren was determined using a psychological test, by taking into account the number of processed signs per unit of time before and after swimming lessons. Children in the experimental groups, whose physical education program was characterized by an increased content of activities in the pool, exercises and games, found an average of 3 more letters in the figured text than children in the control group, and subsequently they outperformed their peers in grades 1 and 2. The incidence in the experimental groups with increased physical activity was on average 4 times lower than in the control groups. A significant positive effect was also found on the level of development of motor qualities.
Research by O.L. Bondarchuk showed that swimming contributes to the formation of voluntary mnemonic activity and leads to a significant increase in the volume of short-term memory in children. When more than 300 schoolchildren were examined, it was revealed that their short-term memory is capable of retaining no more than 8-10 words. After using a special program in the swimming pool, the volume of voluntary short-term memory of children in the experimental group increased by 4-6 units, which was significantly higher than when working with children who did not visit the pool.
A relationship has been established between the cognitive and motor activity of children aged 7-9 years. According to research by G.A. Kadantseva (1993) the closest connection with tests characterizing cognitive activity are speed, coordination and speed-strength abilities. This is probably explained by the fact that the development of any motor quality is connected, on the one hand, with the improvement of mental activity (improvement of mental functions: memory, attention, perception, without which practical activity is impossible), and, on the other hand, with the development of the mechanisms of the central nervous system, among which the main role is played by the maturation of the cortical part of the motor analyzer and the formation of its connections with other parts of the brain.
Research conducted over two years among students in grades 2 to 4 showed that school swimmers are distinguished by more harmonious physical development. 72.4% of boys and 67.8% of girls in sports classes are harmoniously developed and, respectively, 57.2% and 52.4% in non-sports classes. Students in sports classes have higher absolute values of body length and weight, chest circumference, VC, MPC, and higher indicators of deadlift and manual dynamometry. They have a lower pulse rate at rest, a shorter recovery time after a functional test, and better indicators of the speed of the visual-motor reaction when distinguishing colors. Schoolchildren in sports classes have a higher resistance to colds and viral diseases. In regular classes, 5.8% are often ill; in sports classes there are no such people. A comprehensive assessment of health status found that students in sports classes belong to groups I and II. health (there were no third grade students). In regular classes to the 1st grade. 18.7% of schoolchildren belonged to, and 9.3% belonged to III.
Swimming lessons have a positive effect not only on the development of special physical and functional abilities, but also on the general development of adolescents. This is expressed in the progressive improvement of all indicators of physical, psychomotor and intellectual development, as well as in the formation and maintenance of positive relationships between indicators of psychomotor and intellectual development. Compared to schoolchildren of the same age who do not engage in sports, young swimmers are distinguished by a higher level of development of complex psychomotor functions (speed and accuracy of complex coordination actions) and mental processes.
Thus, when teaching children to swim, we are talking not only about the development of special motor qualities, but about the formation in their process of the mental, sensory and emotional sphere of the child, about the positive impact of psychomotor development on the intelligence of schoolchildren.
At the present stage of development of our society, the general social importance of physical culture and sports, their role in the formation of a comprehensively developed personality, combining physical and intellectual perfection, spiritual wealth and moral purity, is increasing. Today, it is necessary to use physical education not only as a means of physical development, but also as a factor that helps improve mental performance and maintain neuropsychic health.
The course of mental processes is the result of the joint activity of various body systems. Since the normal performance of all physiological functions is possible only with good health and physical fitness, they naturally largely determine success in mental activity.
As a result of physical exercise, cerebral circulation improves, mental processes are activated, ensuring the perception, processing and reproduction of information. Impulses sent along the nerves from muscle and tendon receptors stimulate brain activity and help the cerebral cortex maintain the desired tone. The tense posture of a thoughtful person, a tense face, pursed lips during any mental activity indicate that the person involuntarily tenses his muscles in order to more successfully complete the task assigned to him.
Physical exercise and physical activity contribute to the development of the necessary muscle tone, thereby increasing mental performance. In cases where the intensity and volume of mental work does not exceed a certain level (characteristic of a given person) and when periods of intense mental activity alternate with rest, the brain systems respond to this activity with positive changes, characterized by improved circulatory conditions, increased lability of the visual analyzer, greater clarity compensatory reactions, etc.
With prolonged intensity of mental activity, the brain is unable to process nervous excitement, which begins to be distributed to the muscles. They become like a place for the brain to relax. Active muscle tension, performed in this case, relieves the muscles from excessive tension and extinguishes nervous excitement.
The great minds of mankind skillfully used various forms of physical activity in their lives. The ancient Greek legislator Solon said that every person should cultivate the mind of a sage in the body of an athlete, and the French doctor Tissot believed that “learned” people need to engage in physical exercise every day. K.D. Ushinsky emphasized that rest after mental labor is not “doing nothing,” but physical labor. A well-known teacher noted the need to alternate mental and physical activity.
An outstanding doctor and teacher, founder of physical education in Russia P.F. Lesgaft wrote that the discrepancy between a weak body and the development of mental activity will inevitably have a negative impact on a person: “Such a violation in the harmony and functions of the body does not go unpunished, it inevitably entails the powerlessness of external manifestations: there may be thought and understanding, but there will not be proper energy for consistent testing of ideas and persistent implementation and application of them in practice."
One can cite a number of other statements about the benefits of movements that affect a person’s mental development.
Thus, the famous philosopher and writer R. Descartes wrote: “Watch your body if you want your mind to work correctly.” I.V. Goethe noted: “Everything that is most valuable in the field of thinking, the best ways of expressing thoughts, comes to my mind when I walk,” and K.E. Tsiolkovsky wrote: “After walking and swimming, I feel that I am younger, and most importantly, that with bodily movements I have massaged and refreshed my brain.”
Thus, we can say that the best minds of humanity, philosophers, writers, teachers and doctors of the past, at an “intuitive” level, emphasized the importance of physical development for a person’s mental performance.
The problem of the mutual influence of muscular and mental work has constantly attracted a large number of researchers. Already at the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian psychiatrist V.M. Bekhterev experimentally proved that light muscular work has a beneficial effect on mental activity, while heavy work, on the contrary, depresses it. The French scientist Feret came to a similar conclusion. He carried out a number of experiments in which physical work on an ergograph was combined with mental work. Solving easy arithmetic problems increased muscle performance, while solving difficult ones decreased it. On the other hand, lifting a light load improved mental performance, while lifting a heavy load worsened it.
The development of physical culture and sports has opened a new stage in the study of this issue. The ability to dose the load and simulate the varied nature of muscle work increased the objectivity of the data obtained and introduced a certain system into the research being carried out. In the 20s and 30s in our country, a number of researchers have studied the direct effect of various physical exercises on the processes of memory, attention, perception, reaction time, tremor, etc. The data obtained indicate an undoubted and significant impact of physical culture and sports on mental processes and that the resulting changes persist for a fairly long period of time (18-20 hours after exercise).
In further numerous studies of the influence of physical activity and sports on the mental performance and academic performance of students, as well as the influence of active recreation (in the form of physical exercise) on subsequent performance and productivity, there is evidence that correctly dosed physical exercise has a significant positive effect on various mental processes.
Thus, in a number of works by G.D. Gorbunov studied changes in mental processes (attention, memory, operational thinking and speed of information processing) after swimming lessons. The results obtained indicate that under the influence of short-term physical activity of maximum intensity, a statistically significant improvement in mental processes occurs in all indicators, reaching the highest level 2-2.5 hours after the load. Then there was a tendency to return to the original level. Short-term physical activity of maximum intensity had the most significant positive effect on qualitative indicators of memory and attention. It turned out that passive rest is not enough to restore the functionality of cortical cells. After physical exertion, mental fatigue decreased.
Research into the question of optimal physical activity, which has a positive or negative effect on human mental processes, provides various information. So, A.Ts. Puni investigated the influence of physical activity on the “sense of time,” attention, and memory. The results indicate changes in mental processes depending on the nature and magnitude of the load.
In most cases (among athletes), after intense physical stress, the volume of memory and attention decreased. Unusual physical activity has a varied effect: a positive, albeit short-term, effect on operational thinking and information search, reaction time and concentration remain unchanged, and memory deteriorates. Physical activity, adaptation to which is close to completion, has an adverse effect only on mnemonic processes, especially on memory capacity. Short-term loads have a positive effect on perceptual processes.
As shown in a number of studies, systematically high physical activity during the school day of students directly increases the functional activity of the muscular system and has a positive effect on their mental sphere, which scientifically confirms the effectiveness of targeted influence through the motor system on the central nervous system and its mental functions. At the same time, the optimal use of students’ physical activity contributes to an increase in the level of mental performance during the academic year; increasing the duration of the period of high performance; reducing the periods of its reduction and development; increasing resistance to academic loads; accelerated recovery of performance; ensuring sufficiently high emotional and volitional resistance of students to the stress factors of examination periods; improving academic performance, successful fulfillment of educational requirements, etc.
Many researchers have dealt with the influence of physical activity in order to achieve favorable mental activity in schoolchildren. So, N.B. Istanbulova studied the relationship between the development of motor qualities (dexterity-speed and accuracy) and mental processes in primary schoolchildren. Her research showed that in the experimental group, where special agility exercises were additionally included in each lesson, positive changes were found not only in the dynamics of agility, but also in the dynamics of mental indicators.
Research by N.V. Doronina, L.K. Fedyakina, O.A. Doronin, testify to the unity of motor and mental development of children, to the possibilities of purposefully influencing the development of mental processes by using special physical exercises in physical education lessons aimed at developing coordination abilities and vice versa.
Other studies conclusively show that increased physical activity progressively changes not only their state of physical fitness, but also the productivity of mental activity.
In the work of E.D. Kholmskaya, I.V. Efimova, G.S. Mikienko, E.B. Sirotkina shows that there is a connection between the ability for voluntary regulation, the level of motor activity and the ability for voluntary control of intellectual activity.
It was also revealed that there is a close relationship between intellectual and psychomotor development. Psychomotor development is closely related to the development of students’ cognitive processes and, first of all, to the development of such mental operations as analysis, generalization, comparison, and differentiation. In fact, high-quality performance of a particular motor action with given parameters requires, first of all, a clear, differentiated reflection of it in consciousness and the formation on this basis of an adequate image of movement. This is possible when the processes of analysis and synthesis have a level of development that makes the necessary degree of dismemberment of perception possible. The process of analyzing the acquired motor structure consists of its increasing mental division into individual elements, establishing relationships and transitions between them and integrating the results of this analysis in the form of a whole, but internally dissected.
In the light of these studies, we discovered information from G. Ivanova and A. Belenko on the development of biotechnical systems for the study and self-development of motor activity and thinking of children from 4 to 7 years old. Their works conclusively show that the greatest effect in upbringing and education is achieved by integrating motor and cognitive activities, since they complement each other.
The team of authors under the leadership of prof. Yu.T. Cherkesov created a new “artificial motive-controlled influencing environment” for the associated interdependent development of a person’s physical and intellectual abilities on a motivational and health-improving basis.
The essence of a new approach to solving the problem of harmonious development of a person is to use his motivational interest in any kind of activity to organize the pedagogical process in the conditions of using computerized systems for controlling physical and intellectual influence and interaction.
In this regard, physical education, no less than other school subjects, provides opportunities for the development of students’ cognitive processes by improving the performance and assimilation of new motor actions.
Thus, in the domestic literature, three groups of data can be distinguished regarding the influence of physical exercise on a person’s mental [intellectual] processes.
The first group includes physiological and psychophysiological data. They indicate that after physical activity, cerebral hemodynamics significantly improve. In addition, it has been found that systematic physical activity has a positive effect on the functional state of the central nervous system. This group of data shows that physical exercise creates a favorable physiological background in the central nervous system, which helps to increase the efficiency of mental activity.
A group of researchers found that as a result of physical exercise, mental processes are activated, ensuring the perception, processing and reproduction of information, increasing mental performance - memory capacity increases, stability of attention increases, mental and psychomotor processes accelerate. This group of data also includes the results of studying the dynamic characteristics of intellectual activity in connection with the level of motor activity. Subjects with high motor activity showed a more highly developed ability to voluntarily accelerate the pace of performing intellectual operations and uniformity of intellectual activity compared to subjects with low motor activity.
Finally, the third group of data is associated with an increase in the success of students’ educational activities under the influence of constant physical education classes. Research from this group indicates that schoolchildren and students who are constantly involved in physical education have higher overall academic performance than their peers who are characterized by less physical activity.
Thus, all three groups of studies consistently indicate that organized and purposeful motor activity creates favorable conditions for the occurrence of mental processes and thereby contributes to successful learning activities.
However, if the physiological aspect of the effects of physical exercise is quite clear, then the idea of the psychological mechanism of such an effect still requires further development.
N.P. Lokalova examines the structure of the psychological mechanism of the influence of physical exercise on human cognitive activity and identifies two hierarchical levels in it: a more superficial and a deeper one. Performing physical exercises has as a by-product the activation of the surface level in the structure of the psychological mechanism associated with an increase in the activity of various cognitive (memory, attention, thinking) and psychomotor processes. The influence of physical exercise on this level can be quite easily identified by studying the parameters of mental processes before and after physical activity. The second, deeper level in the structure of the psychological mechanism is directly related to higher cortical processes aimed at analyzing and synthesizing perceived stimuli. It is this analyzing level that plays a decisive role in the influence of physical exercise on the development of cognitive processes.
In confirmation of the above, one can cite the words of the founder of the scientific system of physical education in Russia P.F. Lesgaft, who believed that in order to be physically educated, it is not enough to engage in physical labor all your life. It is absolutely necessary to have a sufficiently developed system of mental processes, which allows you not only to finely control and manage your movements, but also gives the opportunity for creative manifestation in motor activity. And this is possible when the subject has mastered the techniques of analyzing his muscle sensations and controlling the performance of motor actions. The presentation of P.F. is of fundamental importance. Lesgaft that for the development of motor activity it is necessary to use the same techniques as for mental development, namely techniques for differentiating sensations by time and degree of manifestation and comparing them. It follows from this that motor development in its psychological aspect is closely related to a certain level of mental development, manifested in the degree of development of analysis and comparison.
All of the above gives reason to conclude that physical activity plays an important role in creating favorable conditions for the implementation of human mental activity as a factor in stimulating the intellectual sphere of the individual.
However, we are interested in the following question: how is all the advanced experience of accumulated experimental research actually put into practice within educational institutions?
Currently, in Russian psychology, pedagogy, and the theory of physical culture, three main approaches to managing the intellectual development of children in the process of physical education and sports training have emerged.
Natural intellectualization of physical education lessons and training sessions, based on the implementation of the principle of consciousness and activity when teaching motor actions and developing physical qualities.
This approach, in particular, involves the use in a certain system of such methodological techniques as the correct formulation of tasks, “focus of attention”, performing exercises as described, setting up mental pronunciation, feeling the movements, analyzing the implementation of exercises according to the scheme, setting up self-control and self-assessment of performance motor actions, etc.
“Forcible” intellectualization, which consists in saturating lessons and activities with material from general education school disciplines, as well as in the active establishment of interdisciplinary connections.
Specific intellectualization based on taking into account the age-related characteristics of the relationships between the physical qualities and intellectual processes of children. Purposeful development at each age of the so-called leading physical qualities (for example, agility, speed, jumping ability in younger schoolchildren, strength and speed-strength qualities in adolescents) allows us to achieve positive changes in the development of intellectual processes of students and young athletes with the help of specific means of physical education and sports
In recent years, another approach has been emerging, based on the use of psychotechnical exercises and games to develop the intelligence of students and the formation of sports-important intellectual properties of children.
The most interesting for us is the second approach, since it is less implemented in the practice of modern schools than the other two.
An integrated lesson has significant educational, developmental and educational potential, which is realized under certain didactic conditions. And this, undoubtedly, must be used when implementing the tasks of the educational process. However, if you integrate general theoretical courses, which, in principle, is what developmental education does, then this does not raise unnecessary questions for anyone. But how to integrate human motor and cognitive activities?
As noted by G.M. Zyuzin, life itself has given physical education as a general educational subject a place on a par with physics, mathematics, and the Russian language. But, unfortunately, in the domestic literature there is little coverage of the issue of interdisciplinary connections between physical education and other school subjects.
A fairly in-depth analysis of the literature on domestic and foreign education systems that use integral connections between motor and cognitive human activity is given in the work of S.V. Menkova.
Thus, there is information about the mutual connection in the teaching of physical education with human anatomy and physiology, with physics; some forms of connection between physical culture and a foreign language are assumed.
The literature contains data on the activation of mental activity during physical education classes in kindergarten, and on the relationship between the mental and physical education of preschoolers during classes in a family club.
Attempts to apply broad educational motives characteristic of several subjects to the teaching of physical education should not lead to physical education becoming an auxiliary discipline subordinate to other school subjects. On the contrary, a physical education lesson should receive an educational focus that allows students to more fully and deeply comprehend the program material being studied in various academic disciplines. A physical education teacher should not act alone, solving a set of educational problems, but in collaboration with his colleagues.
All of the above facts indicate that interest in studying the problem of the mutual influence of muscular and mental work has aroused and continues to arouse the interest of many scientists of different specialties. The meaning of all these studies can be boiled down to the following: physical activity, physical education and sports, active recreation have a beneficial effect on the psychophysiological and mental sphere of a person, on increasing mental and physical performance. In other words, we can say that “movement is the path not only to health, but also to intelligence.”
The realities of modern life are such that in most families and preschool institutions, a lot of attention is paid to the intellectual development of children. A large information flow falls on them, and physical development begins to fade into the background. Many people forget that it is the well-developed level of physical activity of the child that is one of the decisive factors for the harmonious psychophysical development of the child. Children must jump, run, jump, swim, walk a lot and even scream. In other words, the child needs freedom of motor activity.
Physical activity helps strengthen the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, musculoskeletal system, improve metabolism and stabilize the activity of the nervous system.
Many experts believe that in preschool age, physical development, along with mental development, is decisive for the entire future life of the child.
The preschool period of physical development is also called the “period of first extension.” A child grows by 7-10 cm per year. At 5 years old, the average height of a child is 106.0-107.0 cm with a weight of 17.0-18.0 kg. At 6 years old, the child gains about 200 g per month and stretches half a centimeter.
During preschool age, parts of a child’s body develop unevenly. By the age of 6, children of both sexes stretch their limbs and expand their pelvis and shoulders. But boys gain weight faster, and girls’ chests develop more intensively than boys’.
At 5-6 years old, children’s musculoskeletal system is not fully strengthened.
You should be especially careful when playing outdoor games, since the nasal septum is also not yet strong.
Children 5-7 years old should not carry heavy weights, as there is a risk of spinal curvature.
You should not pull children by the arms, as there is a risk of dislocating the elbow joint. The fact is that the elbow joint grows quickly, and its “fixer” - the annular ligament - is free. Therefore, when pulling off a sweater with narrow sleeves, you must also be careful.
By the age of 5-7 years, children have not yet completed the formation of their feet. Parents should be more careful when choosing children's shoes to avoid flat feet. You should never buy shoes to grow; the size should be appropriate (the sole should not be hard).
In children by the age of 6, the large muscles of the trunk and limbs are already well formed, but small muscles, for example, the hands, still need to be developed.
During preschool age, there is an intensive process of development of the central nervous system. The frontal lobes of the brain enlarge. The final division of neural elements in the so-called associative zones allows for complex intellectual operations: generalization, establishment of cause-and-effect relationships.
At preschool age, the main processes of the nervous system - inhibition and excitation - are activated in children. When the inhibition process is activated, the child is more willing to follow the established rules and control his actions.
Since the respiratory tract is still developing in children 5-7 years old, and is much narrower in size than in adults, the temperature regime in the rooms where children are located must be maintained. Otherwise, its violations can lead to respiratory diseases in childhood.
In medicine and physiology, the period from 5 to 7 years is called the “age of motor extravagance.” Parents and educators must regulate and monitor the physical activity of children depending on the individual characteristics of each child.
Strength sports and activities involving high loads are not yet suitable for children of this age. The reason for this is that preschool age is a period of incomplete development of bones, some of them have a cartilaginous structure.
The connection between physical and mental development.
Physical activity has been proven to stimulate mental and emotional development.
Moving either slowly or skipping, the baby gets to know the surrounding reality, develops will and perseverance in overcoming difficulties, and learns independence. Movement helps relieve nervous tension and allows the child’s psyche to work harmoniously and balanced.
If your baby does exercises every day, he will become more resilient and strengthen his muscle frame. At the same time, it is important to include in the complexes exercises for training those muscles that are little used in everyday life, as well as to evenly train the right and left parts of the body. Particular attention should be paid to the formation of correct posture. From early childhood, formulate in your child an understanding of the importance of correct body position, fight stooping and scoliosis, strengthening the back muscles with the help of special exercises.
A direct relationship has been established between the level of motor activity of children and their vocabulary, speech development, and thinking. Under the influence of physical exercise, physical activity in the body increases the synthesis of biologically active compounds that improve sleep, have a beneficial effect on children’s mood, and increase their mental and physical performance.
In turn, the process of mental development of preschool children occurs under the condition of their high motor activity. When cross movements are regularly performed, a large number of nerve fibers are formed that connect the hemispheres of the brain, which contributes to the development of higher mental functions. Motor activity of children is of particular importance for the overall physical development of the child.
There is a unique technique called smart gymnastics.
These are physical exercises that have a beneficial effect not only on physical development, but also on mental development.
Psychological and physical health are closely related. A change in one state entails a change in the other. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the balance of child development activities. During this period, the most valuable games are those that are simultaneously aimed at the physical and mental health of the baby.
If motor activity is limited, then insufficiently developed motor memory can atrophy, which will lead to disruption of conditioned connections and a decrease in mental activity. Insufficient physical activity leads a child to a deficit of cognitive activity, knowledge, skills, a state of muscular passivity and decreased performance.
The interaction of various movements ensures the development of speech, forms reading, writing, and calculation skills.
In the preschool years, children improve motor skills, including motor skills: gross (the ability to make movements of large amplitude: running, jumping, throwing objects) and fine (the ability to make precise movements of small amplitude). As fine motor skills develop, children become more independent. The development of motor skills allows the child to move freely, take care of himself and show his creative abilities.
Objectives of physical education.
Many people mistakenly believe that physical education only includes the development of a child’s physical qualities. This is far from true. The physical education of a child, first of all, includes preserving and strengthening the baby’s health. Your child is still very young and cannot take care of and improve his health without the help of an adult. Therefore, only an adult, namely, you parents, must create for your child the necessary favorable environment that will ensure full physical development (life safety, proper nutrition, daily routine, organization of physical activity, etc.).
The tasks of physical education of preschoolers can be divided into three groups: health-improving, educational and educational.
Wellness tasks
1. Increasing the body's resistance to environmental influences by hardening it. With the help of reasonably dosed healing factors of nature (solar, water, air procedures), the weak protective forces of the child’s body are significantly increased. At the same time, resistance to colds (acute respiratory infections, runny nose, cough, etc.) and infectious diseases (sore throat, measles, rubella, influenza, etc.) increases.
2. Strengthening the musculoskeletal system and developing correct posture (i.e. maintaining a rational posture during all types of activities). It is important to pay attention to strengthening the muscles of the foot and lower leg in order to prevent flat feet, as it can significantly limit the child’s motor activity. For the harmonious development of all major muscle groups, it is necessary to include exercises on both sides of the body, to exercise those muscle groups that are less trained in everyday life, and to exercise weak muscle groups.
3. Developing physical abilities (coordination, speed and endurance). In preschool age, the process of educating physical abilities should not be specifically aimed at each of them. On the contrary, based on the principle of harmonious development, one should select means, change activities in content and nature, and regulate the direction of motor activity in order to ensure the comprehensive education of all physical abilities.
Educational objectives
1. Formation of basic vital motor skills. In preschool age, due to the high plasticity of the nervous system, new forms of movements are quite easily and quickly learned. The formation of motor skills is carried out in parallel with physical development: by the fifth or sixth years, a child should be able to perform most motor skills and abilities encountered in everyday life: running, swimming, skiing, jumping, climbing stairs, crawling over obstacles, etc. .P.
2. Formation of sustainable interest in physical education. Childhood is the most favorable age for the formation of a sustainable interest in physical exercise. But at the same time it is necessary to comply with a number of conditions.
First of all, it is necessary to ensure the feasibility of tasks, the successful completion of which will stimulate children to be more active. Constant assessment of completed tasks, attention and encouragement will contribute to the development of positive motivation for systematic physical exercise.
During classes, it is necessary to impart basic physical education knowledge to children, developing their intellectual abilities. This will expand their cognitive capabilities and mental horizons.
Educational tasks
1. Nurturing moral and volitional qualities (honesty, determination, courage, perseverance, etc.).
2. Promotion of mental, moral, aesthetic and labor education.
Let's take action! From words to deeds.
Smart gymnastics.
Smart gymnastics or brain gymnastics is a set of special motor exercises that help unite our cerebral hemispheres and optimize the activity of the brain and body.
Simply put, they help improve attention and memory, increase performance and expand the capabilities of our brain.
Each exercise from Smart Gymnastics is aimed at stimulating a specific part of the brain and unites thoughts and movements. As a result, new knowledge is better remembered and becomes more natural.
In addition, exercises develop coordination of movements and psychophysical functions (sensations and their perception).
Below are several exercises that help develop and improve certain skills and mental processes.
Cross steps– we walk so that the opposite arm and leg move simultaneously towards each other. We integrate the work of both hemispheres of the brain.
Elephant– the arm is extended forward, we press our head to our shoulder, our legs are bent, we draw a figure eight with our hand in the air (figure eight = infinity). We perform the exercise with one and the other hand. We develop understanding, reading, listening, writing.
Rifles– we sit on the floor, lean on our hands from behind, raise our legs and draw figure eights with our feet. It turns out that we are spinning around our axis. We increase creative thinking, improve operations with equipment.
Neck rotation– we raise one shoulder and place our head on it. When the shoulder is lowered, the head drops down and rolls onto the other shoulder, which we raise in advance. We remove tension in the neck, shoulders and back, and stimulate mathematical abilities.
Snake– lying on your stomach, slowly raise your head as you exhale and arch your back. You can do the exercise while sitting at a table. We increase concentration and perception of new information.
Abdominal breathing– put your hand on your stomach, as you inhale, make sure that your stomach inflates, and as you exhale, draw it in. We relax the central nervous system and increase energy levels.
Turning on hands– raise one hand up, move it forward, backward, left, right. At the same time, we provide slight resistance with our other hand. We move our hand as we exhale. Then we repeat everything for the other hand. We develop spelling, speech, language abilities.
Cap– carefully knead the ears from the center to the edges of the ear. We do this with both hands at the same time. We improve concentration, increase mental and physical abilities.
Breathing exercises.
Breathing exercises help saturate every cell of the body with oxygen. The ability to control breathing contributes to the ability to control oneself.
In addition, proper breathing stimulates the functioning of the heart, brain and nervous system, relieves a person from many diseases, improves digestion (before food is digested and absorbed, it must absorb oxygen from the blood and oxidize).
Exhaling slowly helps you relax, calm down, and cope with anxiety and irritability.
Breathing exercises develop the child’s still imperfect respiratory system and strengthen the body’s defenses.
When doing breathing exercises, it is important to ensure that the child does not have symptoms of hyperventilation (rapid breathing, sudden change in complexion, trembling of the hands, tingling and numbness in the arms and legs).
There are many types of breathing exercises, including exercises adapted for children. Below are exercises that help strengthen the child’s immunity.
1. Big and small. Standing straight, while inhaling, the child stands on tiptoes, stretches his arms up, showing how big he is. Hold this position for a few seconds. As you exhale, the child should lower his arms down, then squat down, clasping his knees with his hands and at the same time saying “wow”, hiding his head behind his knees - showing how small he is.
2. Steam locomotive. Walk around the room, imitating the movements of the wheels of a steam locomotive with bent arms, while pronouncing “choo-choo” and changing the speed of movement, volume and frequency of pronunciation. Repeat with your child five to six times.
3. Geese are flying. Walk slowly and smoothly around the room, flapping your arms like wings. Raise your arms as you inhale, lower them as you exhale, saying “g-oo-oo.” Repeat with your child eight to ten times.
4. Stork. Standing straight, spread your arms to the sides, and bend one leg forward. Hold the position for a few seconds. Keep your balance. As you exhale, lower your leg and arms, quietly saying “sh-sh-sh-sh.” Repeat with your child six to seven times.
5. Woodcutter. Stand straight with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. As you inhale, fold your hands like a hatchet and lift them up. Sharply, as if under the weight of an ax, lower your outstretched arms down as you exhale, tilt your body, allowing your hands to “cut through” the space between your legs. Say "bang." Repeat with your child six to eight times.
6. Mill. Stand with your feet together, arms up. Slowly rotate with straight arms, saying “zh-r-r” as you exhale. As the movements speed up, the sounds become louder. Repeat with your child seven to eight times.
7. Skater. Place your feet shoulder-width apart, hands clasped behind your back, and body tilted forward. Imitating the movements of a speed skater, bend first your left and then your right leg, saying “k-r-r.” Repeat with your child five to six times.
8. Angry hedgehog. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Imagine how a hedgehog curls up into a ball when in danger. Bend down as low as possible without lifting your heels from the floor, clasp your chest with your hands, lower your head, exhaling “p-f-f” - the sound made by an angry hedgehog, then “f-r-r” - and this is a satisfied hedgehog. Repeat with your child three to five times.
9. Little Frog. Place your feet together. Imagine how the little frog jumps quickly and sharply, and repeat his jumps: squatting slightly, inhaling, jump forward. When you land, “croak.” Repeat three to four times.
10. In the forest. Imagine that you are lost in a dense forest. After inhaling, say “ay” as you exhale. Change your intonation and volume and turn left and right. Repeat with your child five to six times.
11. Happy Bee. As you exhale, say “z-z-z.” Imagine that a bee has landed on your nose (direct sound and gaze towards your nose), on your arm, or on your leg. Thus, the child learns to direct attention to a specific area of the body.
Hardening.
There are special methods for hardening children. These include air baths and water procedures: foot dousing, contrast dousing, rubbing and swimming in open water.
Walking barefoot, washing the child extensively, ventilating the apartment are hardening in everyday life. It is very convenient, because such hardening does not require special conditions. It is indicated for all children, but an individual approach is required. It is necessary to select a regimen and take into account the child’s health status and level of physical development.
Follow the principles of hardening: systematic and gradual. Before the start of the procedures, the child needs to create a positive emotional mood. If the child does not like any hardening procedures, they cannot be forced into practice.
It is better to start daily hardening of children with air baths. Firstly, this is a hygienic procedure, and secondly, hardening.
To begin with, select a temperature that is comfortable for the child, gradually reducing it to reasonable limits. It is worth considering that at temperatures below +17 and above +26, hardening activities cannot be carried out. A high temperature can lead to overheating of the baby, and a low temperature can lead to a cold.
At the same time, the child should not just stand in a cold room - this is not hardening, and it is easy for the baby to catch a cold. Air hardening should be combined with physical exercise, for example with morning exercises, which is absolutely necessary for all children.
Ventilate the room, but it is better not to dress the baby and leave him to study in panties, a beacon and socks. When your child gets used to studying in a cool room, you can skip wearing socks and practice barefoot.
After charging, go to the bathroom to wash your child first with warm water, and when he gets used to it, make the water cooler. Extended washing is good for hardening - not only the hands and face, but also the arms to the elbows, the neck and the upper chest and neck.
Hardening can be carried out while the child is sleeping, day or night. The temperature suitable for hardening during sleep is 2–3 degrees lower than the usual temperature in which the child is awake. The same temperature is suitable for taking air baths.
Before going to bed, ventilate the room or leave the window open if it is not cold outside. But make sure there are no drafts; the recommended temperature for children 5-7 years old is 19–21 degrees.
What the child wears at home is also of great importance. Just like during walks, you shouldn’t wrap your baby up too much. When the temperature in the apartment is above 23 degrees, underwear and thin cotton clothes are sufficient; at 18–22 degrees, you can wear tights and a blouse made of thick cotton with long sleeves.
And if it becomes cool and the temperature in the house drops to 16–17 degrees, then you can put on a warm blouse, tights and warm slippers.
Some children love to go barefoot. But it is harmful for young children to walk barefoot on a hard surface for a long time: after all, their arches are still developing. And due to rigid support, existing disorders may worsen or flat feet may develop.
So here, too, everything needs to be dosed. Let your child run around with bare legs, for example, while doing exercise. Or, if you have thick carpet on the floor, allow your baby to walk on it barefoot.
If you have the opportunity to go out into nature with your baby in the summer, where there is clean grass and the environment is not dangerous, then you can let your baby walk on the ground and grass.
Special methods of hardening preschool children can be used - this will only benefit the child’s immunity. However, time, desire and systematicity are again required.
In addition, you need to be a very competent parent in order to clearly understand when the child is not feeling very well, and hardening should be suspended. After all, there are many people who became familiar with the technique and began to implement it, regardless of the child’s condition.
One of the most effective special techniques is contrast dousing of the feet and legs. The feet are alternately doused with warm and cool water and, if the child does not have chronic diseases, the series of douches ends with cool water. If the baby’s body is weakened, then the procedure should be completed with warm water.
Rubbing with cool water has also not lost its relevance.
But what you shouldn’t experiment with is intense hardening. Often on television they show how children are doused with cold water in the snow and forced to walk barefoot in the snow, but this is not necessary. It is also forbidden to arrange swims for children in the ice hole.
Such pseudo-hardening is a huge stress for the child’s body, and its consequences are very difficult to predict. And gradual and consistent hardening will only benefit both the health and well-being of the baby.
Coordination and gross motor skills.
Different types of motor skills involve different muscle groups in our body. Gross motor skills are movements that involve muscles in the arms, legs, feet, and entire body, such as crawling, running, or jumping.
We use fine motor skills when, for example, we grasp an object with two fingers, dig our toes into the sand, or detect taste and texture with our lips and tongue. Fine and gross motor skills develop in parallel, since many actions require coordination of both types of motor activity.
Below are several exercises that are aimed at developing gross motor skills, developing a sense of the boundaries of your body and its position in space.
1. Log. From a lying position on your back (legs together, arms extended above your head), roll several times, first in one direction, then in the other.
2. Kolobok. Lying on your back, pull your knees to your chest, clasp them with your arms, pull your head towards your knees. In this position, roll several times, first in one direction, then in the other direction.
3. Caterpillar. From a lying position on your stomach, we depict a caterpillar: arms are bent at the elbows, palms rest on the floor at shoulder level; Straightening your arms, lie down on the floor, then bend your arms, raise your pelvis and pull your knees towards your elbows.
4.Crawling on your stomach. First, in flattish style. Then only on your hands, legs relaxed. Then only with the help of your legs, hands behind your back (in the last stages, hands behind your head, elbows to the side).
Crawling on your stomach using your hands. In this case, the leg rises vertically from the knee (simultaneously with the leading hand, then with the opposite one).
Crawling on your back without the help of arms and legs (“Worm”).
Crawling on all fours. Crawling forward, backward, right and left with the simultaneous advancement of the arms and legs of the same name, then the opposite arms and legs. In this case, the hands are first positioned parallel to each other; then they cross, that is, with each step, the right hand goes behind the left, then the left goes behind the right, etc. When mastering these exercises, you can put a flat object (book) on the child’s shoulders and set the task not to drop it. At the same time, the smoothness of movements is practiced, and the sense of the position of your body in space improves.
5. Spider. The child sits on the floor, places his hands slightly behind him, bends his legs at the knees and rises above the floor, resting on his palms and feet. Steps simultaneously with the right hand and right foot, then with the left hand and left foot (the exercise is performed in four directions - forward, backward, right, left). The same thing, only opposite arms and legs walk at the same time. After mastering, movements of the head, eyes and tongue are added in various combinations.
6.Elephant. The child stands on all fours so that the weight is distributed equally between the arms and legs. Simultaneous steps with the right side, then the left. At the next stage, the legs go parallel and the arms cross. Then arms parallel, legs crossed.
7. Goslings. A goose step is practiced with a straight back in four directions (forward, backward, right, left). The same with a flat object on the head. After practicing, multidirectional movements of the head, tongue, and eyes are included.
8.Starting position- standing on one leg, arms along the body. By closing our eyes, we maintain balance for as long as possible. Then we change legs. After mastering, you can use various finger and other movements.
9. Log along the wall. I.p. - standing, legs together, straight arms extended above your head, back in contact with the wall. The child makes several turns, first in one direction, then in the other so as to constantly touch the wall. The same with eyes closed.
Outdoor games.
All children love to move, run races, jump, and ride a bike. So why not make this the basis for outdoor games that will help the overall development of the child, along with his physical fitness? These games are universal, they are suitable for different numbers of participants, they can be used both outdoors in the company of children of your friends, and in a regular kindergarten.
This activity helps children get the necessary physical activity, as well as learn to actively and equally communicate with other children, increase their quick reaction skills, and much more.
For active summer and winter games, you do not need serious sports equipment; very often a jump rope or a small ball is enough.
There are a lot of outdoor games. I will just give a few that are most interesting from my point of view.
-BUY A BULL
On a flat area, children draw a circle and stand behind its line at a distance of a step from each other. The driver - the owner - stands in the center of the circle. There is a small ball or ball on the ground in front of him.
The driver jumps on one leg in a circle, rolling the ball with his free leg, and says, turning to the children: “Buy a bull!” or “Buy a cow!” He tries to hit one of the players with the ball. The one who was insulted takes the ball and stands in the center of the circle in the place of the driver. If the ball rolls out of the circle without hitting anyone, the driver brings it, stands in the circle and continues to drive.
Rules of the game:
1. Players should not go beyond the circle.
2. The driver can hit the ball from any distance without going beyond the circle.
3. The driver is allowed to change legs during the jump, jump on either the right or left leg or on two legs.
In winter, you can play on a well-trodden snowy area, rolling an ice cube, ball, puck or some other object. The game is interesting when the driver hits the ball suddenly. He jumps in a circle, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowing down his jumps, suddenly stopping, making deceptive movements, as if he were hitting a ball. This behavior of the driver makes the players jump, step back or take a step to the side.
-FROGS
Before the start of the game, the players choose a leader (elder frog). All players (small frogs) squat, resting their hands on the floor or ground. The older frog takes them from one swamp to another, where there are more mosquitoes and midges. She jumps ahead. During the game, the driver changes the position of his hands: hands on his knees, on his belt; jumps in short jumps, long jumps, jumps over obstacles (over sticks) or jumps on planks, bricks, jumps between objects, etc. All frogs repeat these movements.
Having jumped into another swamp, the frogs get up and shout: “Kwa-kwa-kwa!” When the game is repeated, a new leader is chosen.
-BAG
Children stand in a circle at a short distance from each other. The driver stands in the center and rotates a cord with a weight at the end (a bag of sand) in a circle. The players carefully watch the cord, and when it approaches, they jump up in place so that it does not touch their feet. The one who is touched by the bag becomes the driver.
Game options:
A circle is drawn on the site, with a driver in the center.
1. The players stand at a distance of 3-4 steps from the circle. The driver rotates the cord. As soon as the bag reaches the player, he runs up and jumps over it.
2. The driver circles the cord with the bag, and the children run towards and jump over it.
3. Children are divided into several subgroups, but no more than 5 people in each. They stand one after another and take turns jumping over a rope with a bag at the end. The one who jumped over is the last one in his group. If he touches the bag, he leaves the game. The subgroup with the most players left wins.
You need to rotate the cord with the load so that it does not touch the ground.
For this game you need a cord 2-3 m long with a load at the end of about 100 g. The length of the cord can be increased or decreased depending on the size of the site and the number of players. When the cord rotates, the driver can change its height.
Prevention of flat feet.
The health of the feet is the health of the whole organism, it is the correct gait and the correct distribution of body weight over the surface of the earth, healthy joints and muscles.
Flat feet is a physical ailment of the foot, in which the foot becomes flattened, in especially advanced cases, completely flat, i.e. the sole touches the surface with all its points.
Below, I will talk about exercises that prevent flat feet:
1. Walking barefoot on sand, pebbles, grass in the summer: at home barefoot on a rough surface, for example on a fleecy or massage mat; stomping in a basin filled with open fir cones is a powerful factor in preventing flat feet.
2. Picking up small objects and balls from the floor or carpet with your bare feet. You can arrange family competitions: who can move the most construction elements onto their mat with their toes, or who can collect the most balls in a bowl, etc.
3. From a position sitting on the floor (on a chair), move your toes under your heels to a towel (napkin) laid out on the floor, on which some kind of weight lies (for example, a book).
4. Walking on your heels, without touching the floor with your toes and soles.
5. Walking on a gymnastic stick lying on the floor, sideways with an added step.
6. Walking on the outside of the foot.
7. "Mill". Sitting on the mat (legs extended forward), the child makes circular movements with his feet in different directions.
8. "Artist". Drawing with a pencil held by the toes of the left (right) foot on a sheet of paper held by the other foot.
9. “Irons.” Sitting on the floor, rub the foot of your right foot against the foot of your left foot and vice versa. Make sliding movements with your feet along your shins, then circular movements.
10. Alternately rolling wooden or rubber spiked balls (rollers) with your feet for three minutes.
P.S. A preschool child is by nature very mobile and active. When ensuring a preschooler's physical development, his activity does not even need to be stimulated, it just needs to be directed in the right direction.
It is necessary to select physical exercises in such a way that the child finds the activities interesting, so that they can become regular. At the same time, it is important for the baby’s health that sports activities are not exhausting.
If you want to ensure the proper physical development of your preschooler, remember that physical education is preferable to sports, at least until the age of six. A way out of the situation can be children's fitness, dancing, swimming - those activities that load the musculoskeletal system evenly, and can contain elements of play, which is important for a preschooler.
At the same time, it should be remembered that no matter how many successful activities you select, the physical development of a preschooler will be deprived of a lot if the most ordinary, but such important walks in the fresh air are excluded from it. For a child of this age, running around on the playground or in the park, playing active games with peers is sometimes much more useful than spending the same time in sports training in even a well-equipped, air-conditioned gym.
